The number of people experiencing the enjoyment of touring on bicycles or motorcycles has been steadily increasing over the years. Similarly, cycles have replaced the use of automobiles for travelling to work, school, the grocery store and other places where it is necessary for the rider to carry various objects on the cycle to and from his destination. Panniers, as they are referred to in the trade, may take various forms such as saddle bags, packs, baskets and the like. One of the most convenient places for mounting panniers is on a carrier rack secured over the rear wheel of the cycle.
The use of conventional panniers and their associated mounting arrangements have, unfortunately, lead to some problems when mounted on the rear carrier rack. It is generally desirable for the panniers to be of a relatively large size so as to hold a large quantity of objects while at the same time being lightweight for ease of carrying it both on and off the cycle. To accomplish these objectives many panniers are bags made of flexible, lightweight sheet material. When mounted on the rear carrier rack such panniers lack structural definition. Consequently, it is possible for the flexible rear portion of the bag to interfere with the spokes of the wheel. While it has been suggested to laterally space the bags a sufficient distance away from the wheel to prevent such interference, this approach frustrates a compact design objective reducing stability and manuverability of the cycle.
Another problem with flexible bag panniers is that they have a tendency to sag, making it difficult to load and unload objects from its top. Also, the load distribution of the objects in the bag often becomes uneven which may result in an unpredictable sway of the bag caused by shifts in the load.
The wind resistance or drag created by the panniers is also to be considered since the rider must expend more energy to overcome such forces. The durability of the bag and its associated mounting arrangement is likewise important. And from the manufacturer's standpoint, it is extremely desirable to provide a good quality product while at the same time minimizing manufacturing costs. The reliability of the pannier and production efficiency both can be increased by keeping the number of individual components necessary to complete the system to a minimum. The present invention is directed to solving one or more of those problems while achieving the objectives noted above.